When people think of offsite corporate functions, they often think of parties. That’s not the only corporate event type that could benefit from being held offsite.

Before you decide where to hold your next meeting or corporate function, discuss who will be attending and what your expectations are. Will it be just department heads or is it a company-wide update type of deal. Offsite meetings can give you a chance to strengthen relationships, engage team members, and teach new skills. Having a clear idea of the who and what will lead to a more satisfactory result.

Presentation Venues

Plan a budget. The location should be included in this. The budget will dictate who will attend and how far away it can be held. Selecting an outside corporate event planner or doing it internally will also factor into your budgetary considerations.

When deciding locations of function venues, the goal is to minimize distractions and maximize group participation. The obvious choice is a hotel or conference centre, but if you want to set yourself apart, it can be good to be creative. Event centres, museums and theatres can be great choices. Of course, as with any location, you’ll need to double check possible seating arrangements, technology availability (to ensure it matches with your needs), and breakout spaces. Also consider accessibility and transportation including public transport to avoid parking costs.

It’s important to get to know your location inside and out once it’s selected. The staff should be able to let you know the maximum capacity, what types of seating arrangements are available, how the final price is calculated and if there are any packages available. Also ask how long you can have the function venue. If you require setup or tear down, will you be required to do it or will the venue staff take care of that for you. You may have to call a few function venues to find what you’re looking for, but it is important to have clear, realistic conditions.

Function Venues Offsite

Find out about security. Depending on what time of day or how late the meeting runs, you may need to arrange security to walk participants back to their car. There may also be a CCTV system on the site. You may also need to control who comes in and out to protect sensitive information or protected information. Figure out if, what kind and how much security you need and work with your function venue.

If you decide to have speakers, choose ones that will engage and elicit participation from the attendees. Someone who will just talk at the group won’t give your team the same spark as someone who will encourage participation and make this a standout corporate event.

Food and beverage service may be available for your meeting. You’ll need to know if you need to provide these things or staff to serve them. If you’d prefer the function venue staff to take care of this for you, you’ll need to make sure you know that information ahead of time and relay it to the event staff hosting your corporate function.

Offsite Function Venues

Organization is key for a successful corporate event or meeting. Working with experienced professionals can ease your stress and make the event more productive.